Bay Middle School students learn about health, wellness

Bay Middle School students learned from the experts last week about nutrition, healthy life choices, internet safety, CPR, fitness and many other aspects important to living a long and healthy life.

Bay Village Schools nurse, Chanda Wall, organized the Health and Wellness Day. "Some of the topics here are not addressed in the classroom, and even for those that are, it is always good to have students exposed to healthy behaviors through different venues," she said. She hopes the information sparks good discussions at home and guides those who might be having health issues in the right direction.

Ken Hehnen and Rich Mecklenburg, paramedics and CPR instructors from University Hospitals and Mercy Medical Service Training Institute, helped students experience compression-only CPR. "There are three steps," said Hehnen. "Scene is safe, call 911, get down to the chest and begin immediate chest compression. This is known to have saved many lives." Hehnen said that after introducing students to the process and letting them use the compression dummies, they encourage them to take available full-blown CPR training available at University Hospitals and St. John Medical Center.

Barb Baird with the Nord Center wanted students to be aware of help available for a variety of mental health issues via a 24/7 emergency/crisis help line. "We now have information on the new texting crisis hotline available to anyone in Ohio. With the younger generation, especially, they're more inclined to text than to pick up a phone and call if they need some help. So we're trying to distribute some information on that, as well."

Cheryll McCarty, Bay Village PTA Council president, was offering healthy snacks on behalf of moms everywhere who want to see their children make healthier food choices. "I'd love to see this expand to all our schools and community," she said, noting that many PTA members were on hand to help organize the prizes students could win by visiting more exhibits.

"Involving kids with creative, hands-on experience, and engaging them in some of these health fair activities, really allows them to see the benefits of healthy behaviors first-hand," Wall said. "The information is more likely to stick with them during these critical years of their lives."